Friday — November 2nd, 2007

   Well folks, another Halloween season has come to an end. I hope it was a fun one for everybody. As is typical for me, my interest in Halloween and Halloween collecting goes into hibernation from early November through late winter. Therefore, it is highly unlikely that this blog will be updated again until probably late March. In the meantime, please continue to enjoy this website, and be sure to check back in the spring for new updates. Happy Haunting!

Wednesday — October 31st, 2007

   HAPPY HALLOWEEN!! Well everyone, the big day has arrived! I hope everybody has a fun, safe and spooky holiday filled with lots of candy, laughs and a few good scares. I plan to carve my Jack-O-Lanterns this afternoon, and then watch some scary movies amidst the spooky lighting in my house. One of my favorite classics is of course, “Halloween”—the staple starring Jamie Lee Curtis. It just wouldn’t be Halloween without a visit from Micheal Myers, right? ENJOY!!!!!!!! :)

Sunday — October 28th, 2007

   Johanna Parker recently added a creative and very fun blog to her website. So far she’s got some really great stuff on there. I love her and her husband JP’s “Tree/Tree Hugger” costume! What a great idea...Check out her blog here.

Wednesday — October 24th, 2007

   One week until Halloween! By this time in October, we have reached the point where the rest of the world is catching up to us Halloween nuts. This week on TV they have started running all the “Monsterfest” and “13 Nights of Halloween” programming on various channels. This Saturday (Oct. 27th) ABC Family Channel is having a marathon of “The Scariest Places on Earth”, hosted by Linda Blair and narrated by Zelda Rubinstein. This reality show which features families who volunteer to spend the night in supposedly haunted places, like castles in Scotland, along with a host of video and paranormal detection equipment, is a fun one. It’s campy and overdone, and of course we never actually SEE anything. (Wouldn’t it be great if they really did catch a ghost on camera?) The only drawback are the participant’s chest mounted cameras which give you close ups from below of their terror in real time. Despite the unwarranted (and frightening) nostril-scapes, it's fun to watch people jump and scream and get totally freaked out. Of course it leaves one to wonder are they just seeing what they want to see because of over active imaginations and the power of suggestion, or is there something ghostly and unexplained really there? I don't plan to miss a second of it!

Thursday — October 18th, 2007

   Both myself and other Halloween collectors, have noticed an interesting phenomenon that occurs every so often on eBay. It's when what is normally considered a rare and hard to find item will suddenly start popping up frequently for no apparent reason. This will last for a few days or weeks and then the item will not come up again for a long time. A recent notable example of this is the somewhat rare and hard to find 15" German die cut “Minnie Mouse” girl playing the cymbals. This die cut, which is almost never seen, has suddenly popped up at least six or seven times over the past three weeks on eBay. These are all from different and unrelated sellers. Even Mark Ledenbach has commented to me on this enigma. Which makes one wonder “Why?”. Why does this happen? Why will several of a rare item suddenly appear at once, rather than spread out over time. It makes you ponder if there is some sort of unseen collective unconscious that affects eBay sellers. The fact that I ponder things like this probably means I have too much time on my hands.

Sunday — October 7th, 2007

   SITE UPDATE—I added several new pictures to the Greg Guedel and Johanna Parker sections on the Folk Art page showing a few new pieces from the Halloween and Vine show. My intent is to occasionally rotate the photos so there’s something new to see from time to time.

Saturday — October 6th, 2007

   Today I went to the artist's signing event at Traditions store in Canoga Park. It was really fun! I got a chance to hang out some more with Greg Guedel and Bruce Elsass, who are great guys, meet Glen Lewis of ‘Slavic Treasures’, and enjoy all the holiday goodies that the store has to offer. It's always fun to meet up with other people who enjoy decorating for the holidays as I do. I met one man who has eight Christmas trees in his house! Halloween collectors, Christmas collectors...they were all there. The family who runs the Traditions store are terrific people who really know how to make the store feel warm and welcoming. Ironically I didn't purchase any Halloween items, as I was thinking ahead to upcoming holidays, but it was still a fabulous and enjoyable day.

Monday — October 1st, 2007

   HALLOWEEN AND VINE—I just got back last night from the Halloween and Vine show which was held in Petaluma, CA on Saturday Sept. 29th. I can't say enough about what a fun and fabulous show it was! All of the artists are so talented and there was such a variety of work it was hard to absorb it all. This was the first time I had ever gone to the show, and the best part for me was finally meeting in person the artists that I have admired and known heretofore through email. Halloween folk artists are some of the nicest people you’d ever want to meet, and it was so much fun to hang out with them, see old friends and just enjoy the whole Halloween folk art experience. The show itself was very successful. There were over 900 attendees which I believe is the most ever! I highly recommend this show for anyone who enjoys high quality Halloween folk art. It was great to be amongst people who share the same love for Halloween that I do. I haven't had that much fun in a long time.

   While in Northern CA, I also had the opportunity to view Mark Ledenbach’s amazing collection in person for the first time. It’s mindboggling. What a treat for the senses! The amount of material he’s collected is staggering and his care and display of it is impeccable...Rather than maxing me out on Halloween, all these activities have only made me more enthusiastic about the upcoming holiday!!

Wednesday — September 19th, 2007

   Congratulations to Mark Ledenbach for being mentioned in “Country Home” Magazine’s October 2007 Issue! There’s a short article on vintage Halloween collecting in the magazine which features one or two pieces from Mark's collection, as well as citing his wonderful book and quoting some of Mark's stellar advice on collecting vintage Halloween material. Be sure to check it out.

Tuesday — September 18th, 2007

   One day! In just one more day I will begin the long awaited and much loved process of decorating my house for Halloween! I can't believe it's already that time of year again! When I started designing this website back at the end of April, September seemed so far away, but the spring and summer just flew by. Now my favorite time of the year is here again! For me, putting up my Halloween displays is a huge ceremonious event. For the three days it takes me to complete the task, I immerse myself in it. I don't allow anything to intrude on this special time that I have set aside for myself. Then when it's done I “treat” myself to dinner at McDonald's (practically the only time I ever eat fast food!) and sit back to relax and enjoy my spooky displays for the next 6 weeks or so until it all comes down and gets packed away again on November 2nd. How could anyone not love this time of year!?

Monday — September 10th, 2007

   This past Saturday I visited the new ‘Traditions’ store in Canoga Park for the first time. The new store location has a much better layout in terms of the arrangement of the merchandise. Now it is easier to see all of the wonderful items which are grouped more intuitively. However I was surprised that the new store is not all that much larger than the old location. I was expecting a “superstore” type of thing. However it is clear that what they did gain, was a huge amount of much needed back room stock space. This delightful store full of all sorts of Halloween and Christmas goodies, is well worth a visit for anyone who lives within easy traveling distance of Canoga Park, CA. Traditions is hosting an artists signing on Oct 6th which will feature Greg Guedel and Bruce Elsass. I will be attending, of course!

Wednesday — September 5th, 2007

   Another hearty congrats to Johanna Parker for being featured in the Better Homes and Gardens “Halloween Tricks and Treats” issue! The article showcases Johanna's wonderful work and also shows pictures of her home decorated with pieces of her Halloween folk art, as well as her real cat Jack. The showstopper by far is the incredibly gorgeous fireplace screen that Johanna and her husband JP made together.

   There is also an ad for The Heart Cottage in the same magazine which shows a picture of one of Greg Guedel's wonderful carvings—a huge Frankenstein carrying a tray of grisly Halloween goodies. I had to run over to Walgreen's and buy my copy as soon as I heard it was out! It certainly is getting me excited about the upcoming season!

Monday — September 3rd, 2007

   Happy Labor Day!! I hope everyone had a wonderful summer. It's finally here! The best time of the whole year...The next four months are my favorite ‘season’. The HOLIDAY season! Halloween, Thanksgiving, Christmas, etc...Halloween is just around the corner and all those wonderful signs are popping up everywhere. On a recent trip to New England, I saw some trees that were starting to turn red and orange. There is that hum of excitement in the air that heralds the beginning of the the fall season which, to my mind, starts at the beginning of September...I don't care what the scientists say! The Halloween listings on eBay have tripled in the last two weeks...another sure sign of the coming festivities. And in just about two and a half weeks, I will be putting up my Halloween displays. YAY!!